Welcome to the Team: Chizen Okikura

Introduction

My name is Chizen Okikura, and I joined DNX’s Finance team in January 2025.
After graduating from university, I spent seven years at an auditing firm (five years in Japan and two years in Indonesia), followed by two years at an accounting firm in Singapore and three years at a corporate venture capital firm affiliated with a major financial institution.
I want to share my career journey and the path that led me to DNX.

From Audit & Accounting to the Venture Capital Industry

In 2011, while I was job hunting for an auditing firm, Japan was recovering from the Global Financial Crisis when the Great East Japan Earthquake struck. As Japanese companies faced significant challenges, I strongly felt that overseas expansion was an urgent necessity for many of them. This realization prompted me to join Deloitte Tohmatsu, which emphasized supporting Japanese clients in their global expansion.

I had the privilege of working with many outstanding companies. Still, two of them had a particularly profound impact on my career as an accounting professional: a beverage manufacturer and a real estate fund management firm.
The beverage manufacturer already had a high percentage of overseas sales and established a well-integrated local production and distribution network. This experience deepened my understanding of global expansion, ultimately leading to my assignment at Deloitte Indonesia.
The real estate fund management firm was my first exposure to the fund business. It provided me with foundational knowledge about fund structures, fundraising, investment execution, divestment, and distributions — core aspects of the fund business model.

At Deloitte Indonesia, I worked on-site at the local subsidiaries of Japanese companies within industrial parks, staying for about a week at a time. With the support of Indonesian audit partners and team members, I contributed to helping Japanese companies expand abroad. (Spending four-hour commutes and sharing meals with my Indonesian colleagues was an invaluable experience!)

Later, I had the opportunity to move to an accounting firm in Singapore, where I worked with a multinational team, including the managing director, to provide accounting and tax services for Japanese clients. As you may know, Singapore is a hub for the fund business, and I was fortunate to engage with real estate funds, venture capital funds, and family offices. Supporting clients from both accounting and tax perspectives across borders between Japan and Singapore, I gained firsthand insight into global capital flows.

After returning to Japan, I joined the fund management team at MUFG’s corporate venture capital arm, where I supported investments in both domestic and overseas startups that contributed to MUFG’s open innovation efforts. Our goal was to ensure that financial services were accessible to everyone. To achieve this, we deployed capital effectively from MUFG group companies into promising startups. One particularly rewarding experience was participating in the launch of an Indonesia-focused fund, which deepened my appreciation for the local financial services ecosystem and the startup landscape.

Through these experiences, I developed a strong appreciation for the significance and impact of the fund business.

Why I Find the Fund Business So Compelling

Venture capital funds raise capital from investors and deploy it into startups, providing risk capital to drive innovation. As these startups grow, they introduce transformative services that enhance society while also creating job opportunities. Simultaneously, funds generate returns for their investors as portfolio companies scale and succeed.

Within this ecosystem, I find great fulfillment in playing a role in fund formation, operations (including cash and investment management, investor reporting, and compliance), and fund liquidation. By leveraging my accounting and tax expertise and collaborating with specialists, I contribute to the seamless execution of these critical processes.

What I Aim to Achieve

In Japan, institutional investors increasingly recognize venture capital as a legitimate asset class. However, they also have high expectations regarding reporting. Our capital calls and distributions operations must be executed with precision and efficiency.

From a startup ecosystem perspective, our Finance team’s value lies in ensuring the effective raising of risk capital from investors to fuel startup growth. While investment performance — driven by the expertise of our investment team — is the foundation of sustainable fundraising, I also believe that strengthening investor communication and transparency is equally crucial for long-term success.

As a Finance team member, I am committed to meeting the expectations of our investment team, portfolio companies, and investors.

About DNX

DNX is a fast-growing organization, much like the startups we invest in. The field of fund management is also continuously evolving. Although I am still new to DNX, the company provides an environment where we can build and refine best practices.

I look forward to leveraging my skills and experience to contribute to DNX and support our portfolio companies and investors. Fund management professionals remain relatively scarce in this industry, so I would be delighted to collaborate with those who are passionate about deepening their expertise in this field.

Professional Profile

Chizen joined DNX Ventures in January 2025. Prior to this, he served as Vice President in the Fund Management Division at MUFG Innovation Partners, the corporate venture capital arm of MUFG. In this role, he was involved in fund set-up, due diligence, and regular reports to investors.

Chizen began his career at Deloitte Japan as an external auditor, specializing in audits of Japanese companies. He later gained valuable international experience at Deloitte Indonesia. Additionally, Chizen worked at Aoyama Sogo Accounting Office in Singapore, offering services including accounting, tax, and company set-up.

Chizen is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Japanese Institute of Certified Public Accountants (JICPA) member. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Management from Hitotsubashi University.